MUMBAI: As cable digitisation deadline gets over today, the Andhra Pradesh chief minister N Chandrababu Naidu has written to the central government seeking extension of cable TV digitisation deadline up to December 2017. However, on 30 March, reiterating the switch-off of analogue signals of cable television from 1 April 2017, all broadcasters, MSOs and local cable operators were warned by the central government that action would be taken against defaulters.
The CM has explained the significance of extension of the deadline, the Hans India reported. The state government has already made plans to provide internet facility, cable TV through its Fiber Grid project.
The projects works are under construction and said that works would be completed by December this year. If the government would extend the deadline for Fiber Grid project, it would benefit to people of state and the government. The infrastructure for this project has been readied, he stated, adding that the distribution work was under way.
Indiantelevision.com had reported on 19 December about Chandrababu Naidu's letter to the union minister of urban development , information and broadcasting, housing and urban poverty alleviation M Venkaiah Naidu seeking extension of deadline for digitalisation of Cable TV services in the state he governs -- Andhra Pradesh.
In the letter dated 3 December, 2016, the chief minister stated: Under A.P. Fiber Grid Phase-I Project, a state-wide high speed Optical Fiber Network Infrastructure has been setup across the 13 Districts of the State leveraging the assets of the Electricity Department. A 24-Core ADSS Optical Fiber Cable has been laid for a length of around 23,000 Kms. over the electrical poles with its back-end electronic systems set up as the Points of Presence (PoPs) at 2445 identified locations. mainly electrical sub-stations. A state-wide control and command centre for this entire network has been commissioned at Visakhapatnam as a Network Operations Centre (NOC).
The services from AP Fiber Grid will be delivered by the Andhra Pradesh State FiberNet Limited (APSFL) to the end-users i.e. households. offices / enterprises in partnership with the Multi System Operators (MSOs) and Local Cable Operators (LCOs) etc, the letter stated.
(Around) 13,325 LCOs and MSOs have been registered so far with APSFL as business partners to provide last mile services. The works of AP Fiber Grid have been completed and at present the infrastructure is ready for delivering the intended Triple Play Services to the households / offices. Services are being provided successfully on a pilot/test basis to identified households/offices and the commercial Public services are planned to be launched in December 2016, Chandrababu's letter added.
The digitalisation of Cable TV services is not yet completed in Andhra Pradesh. To accelerate this process. APSFL has initiated procurement of Customer Premises Equipment Boxes (GPON basic box+ IPTV box with WiFi) for enabling expeditious spread of AP fiber triple pay services in A.P. The CPE boxes will be seeded to the households through the APSFL's last mile business partners i.e., MS0s/LCOs, the letter added.
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